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CasusManage · 05-30-2011, 01:36 PM

A.M. PERFORMANCE FINISHES 16th AT VIR

Alton, Virginia – May 15th, 2011 – The A.M. Performance team completed a successful weekend at Virginia International Raceway finishing16th at the Bosch Engineering 200 in only the team’s second ever start in the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge series. Drivers Mike Sweeney and Lawrence Loshak drove the team’s #04 Nismo 370Z GS car to the finish car in what turned out to be an incident filled two and a half hour race.

Loshak had an impressive start from the 21st position on the grid and immediately started picking up positions, but after a few laps had to start all over again after falling to the back of the grid due to a quick spin coming onto the front straight. The rookie driver, who made his GRAND-AM debut this weekend, maintained a quick pace for the rest of his stint and managed to avoid the carnage around him handing the car over to Sweeney during the team’s first pit stop.

For Sweeney his two stints proved to be action packed as well, including a close call where he had to drive off the track to avoid a car spinning back into the racing line. Despite loosing time with his off road excursion, the California native quickly got back in the groove and continued reeling in the cars in front of him. Sweeney took the checkered flag in the 16th position, which marks the team’s best result to date, with a best lap of 2m7.896s on his 57th time around the 3.27 mile, 17-turn circuit.

For more information please visit amperformanceracing.com and you can also follow us at A.M. Performance - Professional Sports Team - Scotts Valley, California | Facebook.

Mike Sweeney

#04 A.M. Performance / Nismo 370Z

“We are very happy with how the weekend went for us, we are a new team and we have a brand new car, so finishing our first race is a big accomplishment and an important milestone in our short history. The whole team did a great job, we are really working well together and we just get better every time we are out on track.

The race was nuts, people were going off and crashing everywhere, we knew it was really important to just stay out of trouble and get to the checkered safely. The #04 Nismo once again was very good, obviously there’s still a lot of things we need to improve, but overall the car has a great platform and it handles very well, we just need a bit more power to be able to keep with the top guys on the straights.”

Lawrence Loshak

#04 A.M. Performance / Nismo 370Z

The weekend was great, for me it was an amazing opportunity to be able to step into the pro arena and to race in GRAND-AM with a team like A.M. Performance. It was also a big plus because I got to work with Andrew Armistead (Technical Director) again, we have a great winning history together and good chemistry and understanding. Everybody together did a great job and the car got faster and faster every time.

It was a good race for us, we learned a lot this weekend and now we know what we need to work on for next time. The car handles great, we are definitely down on power still but once we get that figured out I think we can be fighting for the top spots. We are happy with our result but obviously we are racers and we just want to win, and I believe that is possible wit this car and this team.”

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05-30-2011, 01:36 PM	#270 (permalink)
CasusManage Base Member Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: Austin Posts: 12 Drives: Nissan NISMO Rep Power: 14	A.M. PERFORMANCE FINISHES 16th AT VIR A.M. PERFORMANCE FINISHES 16th AT VIR Alton, Virginia – May 15th, 2011 – The A.M. Performance team completed a successful weekend at Virginia International Raceway finishing16th at the Bosch Engineering 200 in only the team’s second ever start in the GRAND-AM Continental Tire Sports Car Challenge series. Drivers Mike Sweeney and Lawrence Loshak drove the team’s #04 Nismo 370Z GS car to the finish car in what turned out to be an incident filled two and a half hour race. Loshak had an impressive start from the 21st position on the grid and immediately started picking up positions, but after a few laps had to start all over again after falling to the back of the grid due to a quick spin coming onto the front straight. The rookie driver, who made his GRAND-AM debut this weekend, maintained a quick pace for the rest of his stint and managed to avoid the carnage around him handing the car over to Sweeney during the team’s first pit stop. For Sweeney his two stints proved to be action packed as well, including a close call where he had to drive off the track to avoid a car spinning back into the racing line. Despite loosing time with his off road excursion, the California native quickly got back in the groove and continued reeling in the cars in front of him. Sweeney took the checkered flag in the 16th position, which marks the team’s best result to date, with a best lap of 2m7.896s on his 57th time around the 3.27 mile, 17-turn circuit. For more information please visit amperformanceracing.com and you can also follow us at A.M. Performance - Professional Sports Team - Scotts Valley, California \| Facebook. Mike Sweeney #04 A.M. Performance / Nismo 370Z “We are very happy with how the weekend went for us, we are a new team and we have a brand new car, so finishing our first race is a big accomplishment and an important milestone in our short history. The whole team did a great job, we are really working well together and we just get better every time we are out on track. The race was nuts, people were going off and crashing everywhere, we knew it was really important to just stay out of trouble and get to the checkered safely. The #04 Nismo once again was very good, obviously there’s still a lot of things we need to improve, but overall the car has a great platform and it handles very well, we just need a bit more power to be able to keep with the top guys on the straights.” Lawrence Loshak #04 A.M. Performance / Nismo 370Z The weekend was great, for me it was an amazing opportunity to be able to step into the pro arena and to race in GRAND-AM with a team like A.M. Performance. It was also a big plus because I got to work with Andrew Armistead (Technical Director) again, we have a great winning history together and good chemistry and understanding. Everybody together did a great job and the car got faster and faster every time. It was a good race for us, we learned a lot this weekend and now we know what we need to work on for next time. The car handles great, we are definitely down on power still but once we get that figured out I think we can be fighting for the top spots. We are happy with our result but obviously we are racers and we just want to win, and I believe that is possible wit this car and this team.” In case you haven't yet registered for our newsletter and are interested sign up here: Mailing List Sign Up